Mike Moore has applauded Sir Michael Fay and David Richwhite for their role in bringing the America's Cup to New Zealand.
"I remember the sneering when I was the Minister for the America's Cup," he said, referring to the portfolio he was given in 1988 when the merchantbankers led New Zealand's challenge for the cup in Fremantle, Western Australia.
Mr Moore said they were obsessed with the prize.
"Fay, Richwhite were abused for spending tens of millions of their dollars on the project. It's now the jewel in Auckland's crown.
"As is true of all things, we stand tall because we stand on the shoulders of others."
Sir Michael and Mr Richwhite left New Zealand several years ago to base themselves in Geneva and are understood to have occasionally met Mr Moore socially.
The former Labour Prime Minister made the comments to the United States-New Zealand Business Council in Auckland - his first major address since ending his term as Director-General of the World Trade Organisation in Geneva.
He has agreed to be a special trade envoy for New Zealand.
Mr Moore said he believed a free trade agreement involving the US, Australia and New Zealand would force the pace to conclude the Doha development round, which he presided over last November.
The US was working on free trade deals with a number of countries.
Whether people liked it or not, the world was affected and infected by each other, said Mr Moore.
Forty million people were infected with Aids. In 20 years, 25 million had died from the disease.
"Three times as many people die a day from Aids than in the [September 11] Twin Towers tragedy."
But he said the United Nations also reported there had been more progress in the global human condition in the past 50 years than in the past 500 years.
Illiteracy and infant mortality rates had dropped substantially and fewer people were hungry.
Mr Moore said abolishing all trade barriers could lift 320 million people out of extreme poverty within 20 years.
